thoughts

My first encounter with the iMac

I remember my first encounter with the iMac clearly. It was in the kitchen of my girlfriend at the time. I must have been 18. The computer belonged to Björn, a friend of my girlfriend. Björn was a few years older than me, and was about to graduate from high school. Why Björn brought the iMac to Melanie, I don't know anymore. But I can remember all the more clearly how the iMac stood there in the kitchen. It looked like an object from another world, brought to us by aliens. It looked exciting. And it looked inviting. read more →

What is a home computer in 2019?

In the 80s, the term "home computer" has been given to machines like the Commodore 64. At that time, it was a device that you could plug into a TV, write simple programs in an awkward way, and could play video games with. It was a computer in the way that it had a processor, RAM, and was programmed, and it was "home" since it was of little business value and was bought primarily for living rooms and not for offices. read more →

The most Personal Computer

When #apple announced the Personal Computer, they were thinking of a computational device that would serve one human, to augment and expand one’s capabilities to think. “A bicycle for the mind”, like Steve #jobs used to call it. And the original Macintosh was their expression of the idea. read more →

Masters build their own tools

Before he dedicated his life to interior architecture and to product design, my #father initially was trained in #carpentry, among other professions. Now, after he retired, he encounters again the joy of working with wood, especially carving. And makes his own tools. read more →

The Apple II mimicking the typewriter

I just recently realized how different the Apple II was. I was aware of the technological achievements. But this time, it struck me that there has been no mental model of a PC before in almost any head of any person back then in 1977. And that meant, that no one knew how a PC was supposed to look like. read more →

Macintosh’s flawed windows

Now that I’ve spent quite some time with the original #macintosh and its #os, it’s clear how wrong the concept of movable, arbitrarily resizable #windows is. It’s in such stark contrast to my now main work device, the #ipad . read more →

Watches as ambient technology

During my years in #switzerland it took me some time to realize what role a #watch may play. As a dilettante to watches, I used to think that watches are just there for time keeping. Only after years I realized, that they are in fact one of few things a guy can use as a socially accepted #fashion statement. And then, the wrist #tracking devices and time keepers came up, turning the wrist into yet another interface between us and hightech. read more →

The Macintosh

Now that I got to learn a lot about Macintosh, the first #mac, I'm impressed. Given what the developers had at that time, the #computer seems like an impossible achievement. The micro processor #hardware at that time was in its infancy, and the consumers were stuck with the #mentalmodel of the #commandline. read more →